Numbers
by itsawitch
Summary: He watched as her numbers suddenly plummeted. No, that's impossible.. No, not again. KxK story.
1. Numbers

*jumps in* Bonjour! This is my new Rurouni Kenshin story, and possibly the only new story I'm going to be making. Ugh, you have no idea how hard it is, to write a story, and then go over every paragraph and make it at least a sentence longer! Eeks!

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Kenshin ran a shaky hand through his crimson hair. Everywhere hurt, his hands, his ears, his heart. Every breath came out as a wheeze, and for a second, a thought of asphyxiation ran through his mind. He tried to sit up straighter, and the air whistled easier down to his lungs.

He had to have been here an hour or so, looking around. Deep in the darkest corner, he met eyes with a women in a waitress's uniform. She shot him an apologetic smile, and he supposed, would've come to take his order, had her arms not been full with plates and glasses.

The last few customers filtered out of the restaurant, and silence overtook the booths. He heard a few hushed murmurs from the kitchen, and a door swung open. He rolled his eyes, making a point of ignoring it. Memories suddenly pushed to the forefront of his mind, and for a second, he was completely oblivious to the outside world.

He couldn't save her. Her numbers had dropped to a point where all he could do was sit there, holding her in his arms. He'd killed her.. If he'd never gone.. If he'd never acted as he did, she'd still be here, sitting across the table on the other side of the booth, caressing his hands in hers so the scent of white plum could wash over him, a small smile playing at the sides of her mouth.

He'd killed her. Rage overtook him, and for a second, he was shaking uncontrollably, pulling at his hair, ready to rip all of the red hair off, ready to rip off all his fingernails, just to make the pain stop, just to drive away the scent of blood, anything.. Anything..

"Sir? May I get you anything?"

Kenshin looked up in anger, and saw the waitress in front of him take a small step back. Nearly as tall as he was, midnight black hair framing her face, her lips slightly parted in surprise. Wide, blue eyes questioned him as her pencil tapped gently on her notepad. For a second, he tried to think of a reason why she'd be so taken aback, before he realized what he was doing.

His ki pressed against her, and he saw her surprise, her fear. She started to speak again, her voice wavering at the first few words, "May I get you anything?"

"W-Water," he finally choked out, reading her nametag. _Hello, my name is Kaoru._ He looked at the top of her head as she walked away, perhaps a bit too quickly.

_65 years, 6 months, 23 days, 22 hours, 37 minutes, 12 seconds._

He closed his eyes and buried his face in his hands again, the metallic scent of blood still fresh on his palms. He studied the for the longest time, checking under every fingernail, checking every small line and every callous on his hands. Nothing but the fresh pink of roughly scrubbed skin looked back at him. He sighed and buried his face in his hands again, self loathing taking over.

He could hear the Kaoru girl shuffling around. It sounded like she'd opened a refrigerator and was dropping ice cubes in a glass. He could hear the crackling of the ice as she filled it with water.

He heard her suddenly turn, and winced when he heard a noise he had not heard in a long while, she suddenly pealed into laughter. He heard a hand clapping over skin, probably someone pressing their hand over Kaoru's mouth, because the laughter was now muffled.

"Hush up Misao-chan, help Tae out. No.. No! No phone numbers are to be.. No! Misao-chan!"

He heard her rush toward the swinging door that led away from the kitchen, a soft, pink flush coloring her cheeks. She looked back just in time to see the smaller waitress, that Misao woman, be hit by the door when it swung back. When she looked back at him, it seemed as though she would burst out laughing again.

She smiled comfortingly, setting the glass of ice water down on a coaster and grabbed her notepad again, licking the tip of her pen to get it running, "Would you like something to eat?"

He looked at her, simply stared for a few seconds. Only when he saw her blush deepen did her look down at the menu for half a second, "Soba…" he mumbled, pushing the menu towards her.

"Anythin-" his waitress had barely started when he interrupted again.

A cruel thought entered his mind, and he imagined a man in a police's uniform laughing. Three, stick straight strands of hair in front of his face, and he could imagine the man shaking his head. He could practically hear the words of the dreaded man, Saito.

_Whenever you wish not to draw attention, order soba. Plain soba._

"Plain.. Soba.." He wanted to laugh bitterly, and hid his face under his hair as he bit his lip enough to make it bleed. The laughs he felt wanting to slip from him felt hysterical, something he could laugh about for hours, something that would kill him.

Thinking about death, he nearly threw his head back to laugh some more. His chest ached beyond belief, and he gripped the area over his heart, nearly doubled over. He wretched forward, sobs threatening to overflow, the pain beyond belief. He felt his fingers gripping the table, heard the splintering of wood, but the pain was too much to think about anything else.

He heard the waitress murmuring something to her friend, but couldn't pick up the separate words. He blinked repeatedly, all he could hear now was his heartbeat, the blood rushing past his ears. He looked up and saw her, carrying the bowl of soba, and then hand it to her friend. He turned away, expecting her to leave him be.

A soft weight rested on his shoulder, before stroking along his back, and he relaxed at the comfort, sighing softly, before his arms wrapped around her. As her arms began to encircle him, and as he heard her humming soothingly, all his anguish seem to overtake him. Unable to do anything else, his forehead rested on her shoulder and he sobbed and cried.

"Tomoe.. Tomoe.."

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**Kaoru's POV**

The bowl of soba nearly fell out of my hands when I saw the redheaded man doubled over, as though in pain, his body shaking. I handed the dish over to Misao, truly afraid that it would drop from my shaking hands. I flexed them a few times, and looked over at my petite friend, "Please, put the soba someplace where it can stay warm."

I saw her eyes turn ablaze at being ordered around. I ignored her when she began to open her mouth, barely letting her get a "Hey!" out, and went over to my customer. His teeth were grinding together, feebly trying to stop the sobs from racking his chest.

For a second, I stood there awkwardly, glad there were no other customers around. I slid into the booth, paying no attention to the fact he tried to flinch away from me. I reached out, rubbing my hand along his back, trying to soothe him like I did to Yahiko when he'd shown up on my doorstep. He looked up at me through the crimson hair, and I saw whatever will he had, crumble beneath his sorrow. I made a point of shifting more to the side, making it slightly easier for him to bury himself against my shoulder.

My customer reacted the exact same way that Yahiko had, his arms wrapping around my waist, slightly messing up the bow of my obi as he pulled me closer. I bit my tongue to keep from protesting, that sash was a pain to tie, and simply ran my hands up and down his back, shushing him and humming softly as he cried out a woman's name.

_Tomoe.. Tomoe.._

His voice cracking in heartbreak when he said the name, enough to make me blink my eyes several times to keep from tearing up myself. I had to stop humming for a second to clear out my throat, feeling myself getting choked up I saw Tae storm out of the kitchen from the corner of my eyes, and then slowly step back in, before coming back out with a mop and bucket, washing the floors with the patience that only she could have.

I watched Misao peek from the small window in the kitchen, before grin and disappear. I rolled my eyes. Soon, she came out as well, turning out most of the lights, already out of her kimono, and in her Bermuda jeans and green tank top. I flashed her an apologetic smile, but she just stuck her tongue out at me.

The man in my arms was slowly starting to calm down, his grip on my waist relaxing. Without shifting him too much, I reached back to check the bow of my uniform, relieved that the damage wasn't as bad as I'd thought.

I ran my hand through his hair a few times before he slowly pulled away. His eyes were rimmed with red, but they were beautiful. Shining brightly from the tears, they were the purest violet I had ever seen. I watched as those eyes looked away from me, and the faintest, ghost of a blush creep up under his cheeks.

His nose was slightly red, but his face was perfect, beautiful, and for a second, we simply stared at each other. And then I saw a bleeding wound on his cheek, crossing perpendicular to a healing scar that ran from about the corner of his ear to his jaw bone.

But he was beautiful.

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** Kenshin's POV**

I looked at the surprised woman before me. Her bright, sky blue eyes gazed into mine. Her skin was as clear and pale as porcelain, her pink lips smiling comfortingly at me. Her expression, while confused, also looked quite embarrassed, and I noticed her cheeks begin to flush.

Her smile was contagious, and I felt my lips pull up as they wished to do the same. Now that the feeling ran through me, an errant thought entered my mind, when was the last time I had truly smiled?

My eyes felt dry, and I felt my nose running. The truth looked me square in the face as I realized what I had done. I had cried in front of this woman, and, from the way the other two ladies were looking at both of us, they had noticed it too. I looked away, a bit ashamed having shown my weakness to such people, when I heard a gasp from the women with the mop.

"Kaoru-chan! You're kimono!" I looked down at her shoulder around the same time she did, and saw her expression darken. Right at the spot where I'd been crying, a large blood stain had formed on her kimono. I reached up to my cheek, feeling fresh blood from my second scar. We both looked at each other, and for a second, I can say, I was truly scared of this woman.

"Oh my goodness Miss! I didn't.. I didn't.." My mouth hung open slightly as one of her eyes made a small twitch. Creepy.

"My uniform!" Her face flushed with anger, and I reached over to grab a napkin, as if it would help, before looking back up.

At the top of her head. All of time seemed to freeze as I looked at her numbers. It felt like tunnel vision as I stared at them, this couldn't be happening, it was impossible. Impossible!

_1 month, 3 days, 25 minutes, 41 seconds._

A/N: I know, kinda weird, right?

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	2. We've Killed You

Hopefully you liked the first chapter, because I already wrote the second! Yay?

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**Kaoru's POV**

I was taken aback as the man with the red hair grabbed me in his arms, his eyes ablaze. No longer a beautiful violet, now a molten gold. He ran forward, and the shock of the speed snapped my head back, and my head felt spinny. I spun around in my head for half a second, before my vision fell black.

I woke up sometime later, my mouth feeling dry, and stuffed with cotton. I actually had to open and close my mouth to make sure it was clear. Three shadows blocked the bright light shining on my face, making interesting silhouettes, and I blinked and squinted, trying to make the picture make more sense.

"There Ken-san, you've nothing to worry about, she's fine!" A soothing voice came from a young woman in a medical coat, yelling at a red haired man. It took a second, but the red haired man met my eyes and I remembered who he was, my customer. But this wasn't the restaurant… A joking voice rang in my ears as the other figure spoke, his hair spiked in such a way that he looked like a rooster.

"Hey Jou-chan, about time ya woke up, damn near scared me to death." He chewed lazily on a toothpick, grinning, and winked. Something about him reminded me of something. An odd, déjà vu feeling spreading through my stomach the second he said the words 'Jou-chan.' The affectionate name made the corners of my mouth lift up in a smile, a warm, safe effect enveloping my entire body.

A name played on my mouth for a fraction of a second, before slowly, one by one, the syllables slipped through my lips, "Sanosuke.."

I watched the man break into a wide smile, and rush towards me, crushing me in a hug. The scent of him triggered a memory, and suddenly, I was gripping him tightly, my fingers digging into the leather jacket, the 'Aku' symbol I had stitched in, so many ages ago, feeling ratted and torn, "Oh Sano, it's been years!" My cheeks hurt, I was smiling so widely.

He pushed himself off of me, and spit out his toothpick, kissing me full on the lips, laughing in pure enjoyment when my hand smacked against his cheek. How could I have forgotten this goofball? We'd been friends since we were five, and had been the best of friends until I'd turned sixteen, only three years ago. I looked at him, but something felt wrong, something in my brain didn't click. His face wasn't the baby face that it had been when he was five, it wasn't the handsome, drop-dead gorgeous face it had been the last time she'd seen him, when he'd been taken away..

Long scars ran down his face, his skin multicolored as my eyes ran down the aged and new wounds. One corner of his eyes was slightly off, and I realized that his face now seemed to hold a permanent smirk, a scar lifting one side of his mouth. A feeling akin to horror froze my breath, and for a second, all I could comprehend was the odd look he gave me, a crazy spark.

A hand grabbed the shoulder of my friend, and tore him away from me, revealing the doctor, and the serious look on her face. I peaked around her form, seeing Sano run a hand through his hair, swearing. He looked at the redhead seriously, and muttered an angry 'Thank-you' when the man pulled out a pack of cigarettes from his back pocket. I opened my mouth, about to yell at Sano for taking up such a deadly habit, when I glanced up at the doctor. Her mouth was set in a stern line as she looked me over, shaking her head.

"My goodness Ken-san, always a thing for these type of girls." I heard a growl from Sano as the doctor said these words, and a low, humorless chuckle from this 'Ken-san.' The doctor looked over her shoulder at Sano and sighed, "You know that this is for the best, Rooster-head." Her serious expression made a sorrowful smile when Sano replied with a sigh, "Yeah Fox, go ahead, put her down."

A fear gripped me and once again, I couldn't breathe. The doctor pulled off a glove and shook her head, two fingertips pressing against my forehead. A feeling of nausea ran throughout my body, and I wrenched forward, feeling every meal from the past day start it's voyage up from my stomach. The doctor reached down and held my hair back, while Sano held a bucket in-front of me. I lurched and gagged, before my body felt non-existent, and I sagged against my rooster-looking friend.

My head spun again, and Sano looked up at the doctor as my eyes began to close, before looking back at me, his chocolate brown eyes expressing every apology I knew he wanted to say.

"Tomorrow.. Tomorrow you'll know everything, Jou-chan. Just rest until tomorrow.."

My eyes struggled to stay open, and for a few minutes, I resisted the black edges around my vision for the longest time. I felt his hand run through my hair comfortingly, and kiss the top of my forehead before replacing his lips with a damp cloth. "Always so stubborn," I heard him mumble through the cotton wall that seemed to be covering my ears.

My vision darkened further, until I could barely see him. Exhaustion ran through me in a new wave, and right before the darkness of sleep overtook me, I heard one last murmur, "Damn Jou-chan, what did you do to get yourself into this mess?"

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**Kenshin's POV**

I heard Sano enter my room, his lumbering steps giving me the perfect picture in my mind; a man slumped over, defeated. As though he could hear my thoughts, he sighed in defeat, crumpling in a beanbag chair that I had in my room just for that purpose. I ran a hand through my hair, getting the bangs out of my eyes, by the look on his face, I needed a new beanbag chair.

The shifting of the beanies was loud in the room as he made himself comfortable, his brown eyes looking straight at me. The man looked formidable as the forty-watt light bulb shone from the ceiling, just illuminating him enough so that I knew he wasn't happy. His voice betrayed his expression, and a very sarcastic remark was the first thing to come from those lips, "Goddamn Kenshin, I didn't realize I sat in this beanbag so much. Y'know, maybe you've been using it in my absence, sure feels like there's a spot her, about the size of your ass."

I could feel a grin on my face that mirrored his own, and his low chuckle echoed through the room for a few seconds, before he looked at me, his expression hardened, and I awaited the obvious question.

"Do ya know what happened to Kaoru?" he murmured seriously, leaning forward in the beanbag chair, his hands clasped together. I looked at him silently for a second, steeling my expression when I saw his knuckles begin to turn white. His fingers clenched into fists half a dozen times before he sighed and slumped back, "Damn it all." He took a deep breath, screaming out at the top of his lungs, "DAMN IT ALL!"

I sighed and walked over to him, every step towards him, I could feel his aura more clearly, an ache hit me in the chest, and for a second, I didn't breath, I just walked, and put a hand on top of his head. He looked up and grinned at me, but there was no humor in the expression. His chin twitched once or twice, before he avoided my gaze. There was a light sheen over his eyes that was obvious even in the dim light.

I reached forward and rested my hand on his shoulder, and he slumped forward, groaning softly. I saw him reach up to wipe under his eyes and shake his hair, "No.. No.. Kaoru.. Kaoru…"

_Tomoe.. Tomoe.._

I heard a soft knock on my door, and I looked up, seeing the unmistakable silhouette of Megumi. "Come in," I murmured softly, looking pointedly at Sano. He nodded and faced towards the door, wiping under his eyes in a single, swift moment.

The tall women sighed before she opened the thin door. Her hair was let down from her earlier ponytail, and I noticed the bandages around her arms, "Nothing's wrong with her physical form, and even then, if there had been, her numbers wouldn't have changed like that." Megumi shook her head, pinching the bridge of her nose, and I automatically looked at the top of her head.

_45 years, 7 months, 24 days, 13 hours, 56 minutes, 37 seconds._

I threw a cursory glance at Sano as well, noting that his number identical to hers, only the minutes and seconds were slightly off. I watched as Megumi grinned and teased Sano good-heartedly, teasing his red rimmed eyes. I barely heard their words as they insulted and teased one another, until Sano was laughed and grabbed Megumi, spinning her around. The twinkle in his eyes matched hers, and for a second, I knew they forgot I was there.

They were going to die together, a secret I had kept from them ever since I noticed how close their numbers were to each other. Some things are meant to be secrets, and undying love, I suppose, is one of them. And I had kept the secret from all but one person, Tomoe.

_Tomoe.. Tomoe.._

An ache spread in my chest, and I leaned forward, feeling slightly ill, as though Megumi had touched me. I gripped my shirt, was it getting harder to breathe? Was there sand in my eyes? I blinked several times, trying to keep from tearing.

"Ken-san, did you hear me?"

"No, Megumi-dono, it seems I spaced out for a second, what was that?"

Megumi flipped her hair, wrinkling her nose in annoyance, and I wasn't blind to how Sano's eyes watched every black strand. I also noticed how his expression softened, and how a corner of his lips went up in a smile. "Are you sure that her numbers fell?" Megumi's voice invaded my thoughts, and I nodded.

I ran my hair though my hair again and she rolled her eyes, throwing me a hair tie. As I busied myself with tying my hair up into it's ponytail, I saw her bite her bottom lip. Her hands wrung together, before she slipped off her doctor's coat, handing it over to Sano. I watched as she wasted time, adjusting her dress, before murmuring softly. I barely heard her, and from her expression, I knew that she wished I hadn't. "Didn't the same thing happen to Tomoe-san?"

I heard Sano's sharp gasp as Megumi said the words that needed to be said. I swallowed slowly and looked to the side, not wanting to remember how it happened, not wanting to feel the pain as it shook through my body.

_Black eyes looked at me, her face pale with fear, her face splattered with blood. She stumbled forward, and I rose my sword, about to strike, when I noticed her numbers. 45 years, 5 months, 29 days, 32 minutes, 5 seconds. I felt my sword fall out of my hands as I realized, this woman wasn't supposed to die here. She pitched forward, and fall on the ground in front of me. I reached down, picking the young woman up, bringing her back to the inn._

_2 months later_

_I heard her scream as she flung herself in front of the man's blade, and my sword hit her. I watched as her numbers went from 45 years, to 2 minutes, 56 seconds. The man attacking me fell, instantly dead, and my arms wrapped around Tomoe's form, watching as the seconds slowly ticked away, her black eyes slowly losing their awareness, until the numbers over her head all went to zero, and her expression went completely void, her body limp._

_Tomoe.. Tomoe.._

Megumi snapped her fingers in front of my eyes, and I jumped slightly, blinking a few times until I realized I'd been crying. I wiped the tears off my face, growling softly, "What? What does Tomoe have to do with this?"

Megumi gave a solemn smile, and I heard another sharp intake of breath from Sano, and I heard him fall down as emotions completely overtook him. He screamed out in frustration. Whatever he and Megumi knew, I wasn't getting.

"Do you think that, perhaps, you're making her numbers go down?" Megumi murmured, patting and running her hand along the top of my head, trying to calm me down as I froze, reality sinking in. I was the reason her numbers were going down, I was going to kill her. My world spun around me for a few moments, and my knees felt weak. As the ground raced toward my face, I heard Sano's frustrated voice. "Goddamn Jou-chan.. Goddamn.."

Indeed, goddamn.

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**Kaoru's POV**

I woke up to see Sano sitting next to me, smiling sadly. His eyes were red, and I opened my mouth to ask him what was wrong, and ask where I was. He shook his head solemnly, and grasped my hand, intertwining my fingers with his. His lips brushed the top of my forehead, and I saw his chest shake, "Kaoru.. Kaoru, please forgive us.. We've killed you.."

_We've killed you…_

A/N - Read and review!

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	3. Detained

A/N- This entire chapter is told in Kaoru's point of view, which is supposed to make it less difficult to understand. I hit a bit of writers block about halfway through the chapter, which is why it took so long for me to update!

Disclaimer - I do not own Rurouni Kenshin.

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Sanosuke always had a way of being overdramatic and violent. Whenever I was in trouble, or teased, he would be right by my side, brandishing his fists in a way that made even the older kids quiver in their boots. Of course, I had noticed that there were times when his stature would change, when he suddenly shifted in such a way without a catalyst, but I never brought it up with anyone.

It wasn't until he was taken away that I remembered the crazy gleam he'd get in his eyes, how his smile would change to that akin to something evil, and how his voice would even drop a few octaves. At first, I thought it was simply my memories playing tricks on me, until I tried to figure out why he never came to school, never returned my phone calls, and why I never saw him anymore.

Men came up to our house and asked for me, scaring my poor father half to death. They were very vague, but from what I could gather from their riddles and their large words, never a good combination, Sano had been deemed mentally unstable. And from how they treated me, I wasn't sixteen, I was four. But that's a story for a different time.

I had visited his dad next, demanding to know what happened and where they held my dearest friend. Apparently, they had treated his dad like an adult, because from what I could gather from the panicked father, Sano had been diagnosed with a severe case of Multiple Personality Disorder. And no one was allowed to see him.

I supposed that, being his best friend, I should have taken further consideration into several things he'd talk about, and how he'd act. Usually after he became really angry, and that gleam came into his eyes, the next day, he'd panic about not being able to remember what had happened. Only what had set him off. At first, I'd listed it off as bouts of alcoholism, or even drugs, scolding him mercilessly. He didn't deny or even object to my scolding's, only nodded and say he'd try to stop.

I suppose, maybe, I should've recognized that, unless he was really heavy on those super-bad drugs, I shouldn't have assumed that it was only his bad habits that were the cause of everything. But, as many things are, it was too little, too late. He was already gone by the time everything was pieced together to make a full, complete Sano-puzzle. It was a regret I had carried with me, even after I moved from Tokyo and into Kyoto.

But anyway, back to the present. His head rested on my chest, as though I were a pillow, and he snored softly. I twirled a bit of brown hair between my fingers, letting my thoughts drift. He was really sweet, his carefree personality and joking manner still the same it had been when I had last seen him. He had been joking when he laid on top of me, pretending to fall asleep when I had shifted the topic from cars to the new styles in clothes, not one of my favorite topics, but one I could more easily relate to. A few snores later, he actually fell asleep.

I had attempted, for a few seconds, to wake him up. Of course, just like before, he was a rock when he slept, and nothing less than an earthquake would get him to move from his spot until he woke up on his own. The doctor, Megumi I'd been told, had walked in right after Sano had fallen asleep. She gave me nothing but a soft smile for the longest time, and I began to see envy seeping onto her face before she finally began to speak again.

My my, Sano, you're such a dog.

"_Megumi-san, what happened to Sanosuke?" I murmured, rocking slightly in the chair. Sano's arms wrapped around my waist tightly in response to his name, forcing me to wiggle and shift around, allowing me to breath again. The doctor smiled sadly, giving a mournful chuckle, and dragged a gentle finger over one of his many scars. Her hand darted away and my questioning look, and she flushed a light shade of pink, so light that I supposed I could've simply imagined it._

"_I tried so hard to sew these up, and even then, you didn't recognize him…" she murmured, referring to the scars, before looking at me seriously. "Kamiya-san, how much do you know about Sano? Do you know about his condition? You were his friend for a long time, surely you noticed how… Protective he may be?" _

_I nodded, "Only a little. I only knew that, he had a strong case of Multiple Personality Disorder, and that I couldn't see him after he was taken away." Megumi smiled softly at my response, shaking her head again, "So, I suppose, you wish to know why he has these scars?"_

_I nodded fiercely, and Sano's arms wrapped tighter around me. Megumi looked fondly upon my friend, "He received these scars after falling through a window, trying to escape when he was first.." she bit her lip, searching for the right words, "When he was first.. Detained."_

"_Megumi-san," I began, after a few seconds of silence, "Are you and the redheaded man doctors?" _

_I received a chuckle in reply, "Oh, Ken-san? He is as much of a doctor as Sano is." The sentence gave me an odd picture of Sano with a stethoscope, but I shook the picture out of my mind. Megumi leaned forward, using her dark hair to cover her face, "Truth be told, we're as detained here as Sanosuke is." I barely heard her whisper over my breathing, and Sano's snoring._

"_D-does that mean.. That I-" I began to speak again, fear clenching my chest. Was I mentally unstable? Was I going to be detained here for the rest of my life, living as though a prisoner?_

"_No, no," she murmured, "Ken-san brought you here for a different reason.. It appears that, you are under some odd circumstances.."_

Megumi had left without another word, and I couldn't stop her, being restrained by the large childhood friend. Sano shifted slightly, forcing me to take shorter breathes instead of longer, relaxing ones. Already I could feel my heartbeat beginning to race from the lack of air, making my earlier calm turn into anxiety.

The door to my room opened again, this time yielding the redheaded Ken-san, dressed in a black t-shirt, and dark blue jeans. A small voice in the back of my head noticed how the bottoms of his jeans were tattered, probably after being dragged and stepped on, he wasn't a very tall man. He gave my a wary smile, and ran a quick hand through crimson bangs.

One of his hands tapped on Sano's back, waking him up. The reaction from Sano seemed wrong, I wasn't able to wake up Sano for the life of me. The sleepy rooster-head looked at me, confused, before turning to look over his shoulder, into the violet eyes of the man behind him.

"Mmm, whadya want, Kenshin?" he mumbled sleepily, making a large yawn. I scrunched my nose as the warm Sano-breath washed over my face, a detail I was suddenly very aware of.

"Ew! Sano, get off," I squirmed, my hands pushing against his brawny shoulders. He chuckled, blowing at my bangs one last time before yielding and moving towards a chair. His lanky form lumbered as a sort-of bear, still drowsy, plopping into a cushy chair just to the right of me with a small "Oof."

He flashed a grin at me, and then looked back at Kenshin, "What do you need then, man?" He leaned forward, and a small alarm went off in my head when his posture suddenly tightened, his face hardening in a way I had never seen before.

I noticed how the redheaded man shifted into a posture more alike to playfulness, and I adopted the same role, sitting slightly to the side to make me seem more laid back, and hopefully, Sano's behavior would become the same. It was a habit of body language I'd been noticing when Megumi and Kenshin interacted around him. It was also something I had learned from experience when we were little.

He didn't relax, and Kenshin's voice was soft when he began to speak again, although the words were directed at me, "Kamiya-san, I realize you're probably very confused about what's happening here, but I need to know several things before I tell you anything. Everything you can tell me about your family, friends, job, schools, anything or anyone that will look for you, now that you're.." Violet eyes darted to the floor, and the man's face became much more somber, "Now that you're missing."

I felt my posture become slightly more rigid and tense, and Sano glanced warily at me, and then at Kenshin, and I saw that crazy gleam in his eyes change into something more panicked.

"Sano, please leave," I murmured softly. But no matter what I did, I couldn't make my voice soothing. Even I could hear the fear that made my voice waiver. One of my hands reached out, and I could visibly see it trembling as it reached out to pat his shoulder. He twitched underneath my touch, and I withdrew my hand, afraid he would snap.

"Sano!"

Everyone in the room jumped as the voice of the doctor rang throughout the building, and Sano bounced up to his feet, giving a playful grin, "I think the Fox needs me, see you two later." He ran towards the door, flinging it open, and ran out into the hallway, with more enthusiasm than I could fathom, especially for a person who was probably going to be scolded.

After the door behind him closed, I saw Kenshin shift into a more formidable stance from the corner of my eyes, changing the earlier playful aura in the room into a tenseness that you could cut with a knife. I looked back at the man, to find that he wasn't looking at me, so much as he was looking above my head.

For a few seconds, all I could hear was _my _breathing, and I tried to make it less obscene in embarrassment. I saw one of his eyebrows raise up in question, before they both furrowed together, and his face changed into one of confusion and frustration.

He took a few steps towards me abruptly, the expression on his face frightful, and my heart clenched in fear. I pressed further into the chair I was sitting in, wishing that it was bigger, and could possibly hide me.

The violet eyes began to turn into a sort of amber color, and he studied me closely, before sighing and looking at the chair that Sano had vacated. He reached towards the chair, pulling it so that, when he sat down, he was facing me. He leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees, his chin laying on the knuckles of his fist.

_Those knuckles look very white_. I shifted uneasily in my chair, my breath caught in my throat. My fingers trembled as I reached up, resting them at my collarbone, feeling the small chain around my neck that was hidden under my shirt. _Father, give me strength. _

My voice betrayed me, shaking on the first word, "W-why am I here?" A shudder ran down my spine from the look he gave me, and for a second, I truly thought I was going to die. His eyes shifted from my eyes, to the top of my head, to my hand clutching at my hidden necklace.

Then, suddenly, he shifted back, his body hitting the back of his chair with enough force that it rocked back, nearly teetering backwards, his hands hitting the ends of the armrests to keep his balance. I quite nearly jumped out my chair to dart out of them room, but my body felt frozen by his now-amber eyes.

He didn't lean forward like before, which made my heart start to beat normally, and I waited for the longest seconds of my life for him to begin to speak again.

"Tell me about your family, friends, and anything or anyone that will be looking for you, now that you're with us," he repeated from before, and my heart started to speed up again.

I took a few shaky breaths, and nodded quickly, "M-my," I gasped and took another breath, trying desperately to get the strong, sure voice I needed to be capable of, "My parents are both dead, my mother died when I was little, my father died just last year."

I was about to continue, but he gave me a withering stare, and I simply closed my mouth. "What did they die from?" He inquired gravely, and I swallowed what felt like a large lump in my throat. It was a simple question, and my mouth and voice went on auto-pilot, going into a practiced answer for the question that several people had asked about.

"My mom died in a fire, long ago, in our house when I was four. My father perished from cancer," I murmured, and, in confidence, I felt empowered by the tone of my voice. My heart steadied, and I felt ready for the next question.

"What type of cancer? Was the fire caused by arson? During what season did it occur?" His eyes bored into mine, and my heart ached at the insensitive, but personal to me, questions. Slightly taken off guard despite my earlier feelings, my eyes dropped from his amber, and I mumbled the rest.

"Lung cancer, caused by cigarettes. The fire was in the dry season, during drought. A neighbor had a gas leak, and it leaked into our house. My mom lit a match to light a candle, because she had broken a light bulb in our basement." For a second, I wondered if he heard me, I was speaking so softly that I could barely hear myself.

He nodded thoughtfully, and for a few seconds, I was simply lost in the sorrow and irony of my mother's death, a woman who I had truly barely knew, and who I could only barely remember. Caught in the small ironies that my mother had died from a neighbor's mistake, I was also brought to my father's death.

For a full year he had quit cigarettes, and a trip to the doctor showed his intentions had been for naught, when it showed that despite his efforts, he would still have to fight to win against his past mistakes. And, as it turned out, he lost.

Lost in my thoughts, I zoned out from my surroundings, until the redhead snapped his fingers in front of my nose. I shook my head, trying to rid myself of the sad thoughts, which I had spent hours of my life on before. His voice immediately held my attention again, and it was a wonderful distraction.

"And your friends? Employers? Teachers?"

"My closest friend who may be concerned would be Misao-chan, my others aren't close enough to probably take notice for a while." I blew upwards, puffing up my bangs as I dwelled in my thoughts. In truth, the friends that I had left behind in Tokyo probably wouldn't be concerned at all, I wasn't known for keeping in touch.

"I work at the diner, and Tae-san knows me quite well, she'll be concerned when I don't show up for work and-" I broke off, suddenly more concerned about what I was saying. Didn't I want to be rescued? Sure, I wanted to see Sano, but what if these people were here to-

Kenshin growled impatiently, and suddenly I threw together a quick lie, "But if you let me call in, I'm sure she'll be okay." _I never call in sick, Tae will know something is amiss…_

Kenshin looked into my eyes, and I knew, immediately, that he knew something was off about my statement, "No," he murmured quietly, "No phone calls. Now, do you go to school?"

"Kind of," I whispered softly, my hoped dashed, "I take a pottery and cooking class at the Community College."

"Who're your teachers?" I heard a slight smile on his voice and glanced up at him. One of the corners of his lips was twitching, desperately wanting to raise up into a smirk. _How dare he mock me!_

"Hiko.. Sensei.. Teaches both classes." I added the 'sensei' part with hesitation, and my heart dropped along with my ego. That man didn't need any honorific, his ego was large enough as it is. I saw red hair shake back and forth from the corner of my eyes, and looked up, to see the man covering his mouth, making a small snort.

"What? Was something I said funny?" My vision felt red, even though nothing truly changed, and I nearly stood up to slap the chortling man in front of me. How dare he! I felt my eyes scan the room for something large to smack him with, before he calmed down, only a slight smile on his face.

"Calm down, Kamiya-san, this one isn't laughing at you, this one is simply amused that his former instructor is now teaching pottery…" He looked up at the ceiling, reclining more in his chair, giving a small chuckle. His lips moved, and I could only hear the soft tones of his voice changing, not individual words.

When he looked back at me, his eyes were that lovely violet color, and nearly sparkled with friendliness, gentleness. In the back of my head, I wondered briefly if this man also suffered from multiple personalities. He nodded his head toward me, in a sort-of bow, and began to rise off of his chair.

"Kenshin," I whispered softly, as one last detail set forth in my mind. His eyes met mine again, confused. "I own a small dojo, back in Tokyo. I rent it out to a couple, please make sure that they, and my dojo, stay safe."

The redhead nodded and smiled reassuringly, "Yes, they'll be safe. What are their names?"

I felt my smile lift, knowing that, if anything, this would be what saved me. If they didn't simply let me go with this new information, I didn't know what would.

"Fujita Goro, and his wife, Tokio."

* * *

A/N - For those of you who are confused, Fujita Goro is Saitoh's code-name for when he's in the police force. *smiles* Read and Review!

Oh! And also, does anyone know any beta readers who wouldn't mind editing this story a bit? I have a list of those who I would like to edit my stories but.. Well.. I'm shy to the whole thing. *giggles uneasily*


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